Employee Engagement Drivers for Organizational Success

Transcription

1 Global Journal of Management and Business Studies. ISSN Volume 3, Number 6 (2013), pp Research India Publications Employee Engagement Drivers for Organizational Success School of Business, Galgotias University, Plot No.2, Sector 17-A, Yamuna Expressway, Greater Noida, Gautam Budh Nagar, UP. Abstract Employee Engagement is vital component for organization s success but it is a complex concept. Various elements are influencing Employee Engagement at its implementation level. Success lies in identifying those underlying elements which influence employees motivation level that leads to outperforming organization. There are several trends that are developing due to different working patterns spanning across organizations national and international boundaries. These patterns create cultures that are dominated by different motivating factors. The Organization leadership styles, Human Resource strategies, Culture Prevailing within an organization are the governing factors that influence an employee s engagement level. Need for Productivity, Career Advancement, Training, Exceptional Customer Service, Creating work life balance, Acquisition and Retention of key talent, Evolving Employer Employee Relationships are some of the existing reasons why in today s competitive scenario Employee Engagement is necessary. This is a conceptual paper which aims to explore the Key drivers of employee engagement and their involvement reasons in depth and its sway on Employee Engagement. The mechanisms that work behind an employee s involvement are manifold. Top management s span of control and the freedom level of Decision making for employees all have a profound effect on engagement level. These create strategies for functioning at workplace. Keywords: Employee Engagement; Key Drivers.

2 Introduction Competition is rising across industries both domestically and internationally. Use and applications of technological developments are at its peak at all levels of management functioning. This kind of environment has compelled organizations to improve efficiency in production and effectiveness in achieving goals. Employee Engagement (hence forth as EE) is a complex concept but a vital component for every organization to thrive in this competitive scenario. The need for EE arose out of the need to increase productivity and to get maximum output from efforts. A report from Human resources in Canada s oil and gas sector says that the most important issues in the current scenario are strategic recruitment of employees, their engagement and leadership development. The emphasis that EE as one of the human resources term is synonyms to retaining employees in organization for long.ee basically means engaging employee to their work, so that maximum output can be resulted from them and as a result maximum profit.it is one of the instrument for organizational as well as for employee development. Thus creating a culture of employee engagement is very essential for every organization. It can be treat as an engagement ring for employee from their organization to stay with them for life time.cohen writes onpeter F. Drucker s thought on leadership that to develop engagement in workers the criteria s that should be fulfilled by an organization include careful placement and promotion, demanding high standards of performance, providing workers with information and encouraging workers to acquire managerial vision. CIPD says that Employee engagement goes beyond motivation and simple job satisfaction. It can be seen as a combination of commitment to the organisation and its values and a willingness to help colleagues. Ernst & Young defines Employee Engagement as Emotional connection an employee feels toward his or her employment organization, which tends to influence his or her behaviors and level of effort in work related activities. Corporate Leadership Council defines Engagement is the extent to which employees commit to something or someone in theirorganization, how hard they work, and how long they intend to stay as a result of that commitment.gallup defines Engaged employees are those who work with a passion and feel profound connection to their company and drive innovation and move the organization forward. Dr. Ken Oehler, Aon Hewitt's global engagement practice leader said Employers need to recognize the incredible financial opportunity behind their investments in talent and develop a long-term strategy for keeping their employees engaged and productive at work." The research analysis conducted by Hewitt found a strong correlation between employee engagement levels and Total Shareholder Return.Towers Watson a leading global professional services company through their client work and global workforce studies, correlate high engagement withbetter financial metrics. Hay Group is a global management consulting firmconducted a survey for Best Companies for Leaders found that top performing firms are cultivating engaging cultures. These companies are seeing their engagement efforts result in greater levels of loyalty post-recession. The Change Works Consulting

3 Employee Engagement Drivers for Organizational Success 677 Group research results have shown that engaged employees work more productively, deliver higher levels of customer service, experience greater levels of satisfaction, and improve the bottom-line performance of the organisation.gallup's unique employee engagement approach has proven links of EE to productivity, customer engagement, quality, retention, safety, and profit.the Change Works Consulting Group says that EE is a complex concept examining the extent to which an employee applies themselves atwork with various components such as cognitive, emotional and behavioral. Cognitive refers an employees beliefs about the company, its leaders and the workplace culture.the emotional aspect is how employees feel committed and motivated to come to work and The behavioral factoris the value-added component reflected in theamount of effort employees put into their work which includes appropriate use of intellect, energy and efforts. 2. Objectives The main objective of this paper is to get an understanding of EE concept and EE drivers that defines business success. 3. Research Methodology This paper aims to do a descriptive study on different aspects of EE which is a fact finding investigation. It is specifically designed to gather and represent the information for more detailed study. Secondary data collection method was used ranging from research papers, articles and consulting reports. Reports from the different consulting groups are the prime focus as this provides the basis for the study with all current and practical facts relevant to the study. 4. Benefits of Employee Engagement Based on the literature review there are various benefits that EE brings forth for an organizations success. These are outcomes that have resulted are: Improved Passion to excel at work place by employees, Increased employer branding, Reduced accidents at workplace, Greater commitment for achieving organizations goals, Better recruitment and selection, Employees as brand ambassadors, Business growth and increase in profits, Positivity to the work environment that is infectious, Greater sense of belongingness and attachment, Great productive teams, Higher retention rate, Increase in productivity, Highly delighted customer experiences and loyalty, Value addition to the company, Increase in loyalty, Greater emotional control and the like. 5. Employee Engagement: Drivers There are several drivers for engagement which vary by industry, job functions, group and job level. The State of the American Workplace: Employee Engagement Insights

4 678 for U.S. BusinessLeadersreport findings suggests that engaged workers contribute significantly to the productivity, profitability and customer ratings; leadership plays an important role in raising the engagement levels of employees and different types of employees need different engagement levels. These drivers are comprised of culmination of various factors affecting each level. Socialization programs help in building a strong culture and it sets the stage for employees to build strong relationships on their first day of job. When employees feel valued both by their superiors for their work done engagement levels increase. Recognition and praise creates a performance culture that helps in building a long term prospects. Good quality line management, two way open communication, effective cooperation, focus on developing employees and their wellbeing, fair pay and benefits, Good HR practices in place and a harmonious work environment serve as the basis for EE drivers. 6. Conclusion It can therefore be concluded that organizations need to take care of their employees from day one to help build EE levels and it should be a continuous process followed at every aspect of management. References [1] A Nortje. The Role Leaders Play in Employee Engagement[Online article].available: [2] [3] C Wildermuth and M Wildermuth (January 01, 2008). Article in regular journal, T and D, [4] CIPD research report (January, 2010). Creating engaged workforce [Online].Available: 87c3876f3371/0/creating_engaged_workforce.pdf. [5] Employee engagement. How can I stimulate employee engagement - and turn their enthusiasm into bottom-line results? [6] Ernst & Young s Oil and Gas team strategic brainstorming session in Calgary, Human resources in Canada s oil and gas sector: A snapshot of challenges and directions report[online].avaiable: -resources-in-canada-oil-gas-sector/$file/human-resources-in-canada-oilgas-sector.pdf.

5 Employee Engagement Drivers for Organizational Success 679 [7] Jim Thomas, Vice President of Development Dimensions International (DDI) a consulting service company [Online]. Available: [8] N R Lockwood (2007), Article in regular journal, Research Quarterly 52(3):1 12. [9] Report Highlights (2013) Trends in Global Employee Engagement [Online].Available: [10] S Pande and S Basak (2012), Human resource management: Text and cases. New Delhi: Dorling Kindersley. [11] T Maylett and J Nielsen (2012), Article in regular journal, T and D, 66, 4, [12] The Change Works Consulting Group. Employee Engagement Consulting [Online].Available: [13] The State of the American Workplace: Employee Engagement Insights for U.S. Business Leaders report [Online].Available: /163007/state-americanworkplace.aspx. [14] Tower Watson. Creating Sustainable Employee Engagement [Online].Available: [15] W A Cohen (2010), Drucker on leadership: New lessons from the father of modern management, San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

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